Two transatlantic rowers have been rescued from a life raft in the middle of the ocean after their small boat apparently sank in rough seas.
Tom Sauer and Tom Fancett were rescued by a cruise ship after 10 hours in the raft, almost 500 miles south west of the Canary Islands, coastguards said.
Briton Fancett and Sauer, who has dual Dutch/Russian nationality, left the Canary Islands on December 4 to row to the Bahamas in the 2011 Atlantic Ocean Rowing Race.
Falmouth Coastguard, who co-ordinated the rescue, said the emergency beacon from the men’s boat, 8.6 metre PS Vita, was triggered at around 7.54pm on Tuesday, 480 miles from the Canary islands.
